2G: firms to face CBI charges for excess spectrum

The delay in filing the chargesgeet was due to a difference of opinion between the CBI director, who was of the view that those named in the FIR should be prosecuted, and the agency’s director of prosecution. Photo: Priyanka Parashar/Mint

Updated: Fri, Nov 30 2012. 01 33 AM IST

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the CBI to go ahead with its outgoing director A.P. Singh’s view on the prosecution of telecom companies, their officials and public servants on the allocation of excess 2G spectrum during the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) regime when the late Pramod Mahajan was telecom minister.

The apex court paved the way for the agency to file the chargesheet in the case in which a first in formation report (FIR) was lodged against the then telecom secretary Shyamal Ghosh and deputy director general (value added aervices) J.R. Gupta and unnamed officials of Bharti Cellular (now known as Bharti Airtel), and Hutchinson Max and Sterling Cellular (now known as Vodafone Essar) in November 2011.

The delay in filing the chargesgeet was due to a difference of opinion between the CBI director, who was of the view that those named in the FIR should be prosecuted, and the agency’s director of prosecution. The matter was referred to the attorney general G.E. Vahanvati for his opinion and he gave the view to the CBI which was placed in a sealed cover before a bench comprising justices G.S. Singhvi and K.S. Radhakrishnan.

After perusing the report, the bench directed the CBI to go by the view of its director in taking further action on the allocation of spectrum between 2001-03 when Mahajan was the telecom minister. “We are of the opinion that CBI will take action in accordance with the view expressed by CBI Director against some persons and companies,” the bench said.